''The Savage Sword of Conan'' was a black-and-white magazine-format
comic book
A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
series published beginning in 1974 by
Curtis Magazines
Curtis or Curtiss is a common English given name and surname of Anglo-Norman origin from the Old French ''curteis'' ( Modern French ''courtois'') which derived from the Spanish Cortés (of which Cortez is a variation) and the Portuguese and G ...
, an imprint of American company
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
, and then later by Marvel itself. ''Savage Sword of Conan'' starred Robert E. Howard's most famous creation,
Conan the Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including '' Conan the Barbarian'' and '' Conan the Destroyer'') ...
, and has the distinction of being the longest-surviving title of the short-lived Curtis imprint.
As a "magazine", ''Savage Sword of Conan'' did not have to conform to the
Comics Code Authority
The Comics Code Authority (CCA) was formed in 1954 by the Comics Magazine Association of America as an alternative to government regulation. The CCA allowed the comic publishers to self-regulate the content of comic books in the United States. ...
, making it a publication of choice for many illustrators. It soon became one of the most popular comic series of the 1970s and is now considered a cult classic. Roy Thomas was the editor and primary writer for the series' first few years (until issue 60), which featured art by illustrators such as
Neal Adams
Neal Adams (June 15, 1941 – April 28, 2022) was an American comic book artist. He was the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates, and was a creators-rights advocate who helped secure a pension and recognition for Sup ...
,
Dick Giordano
Richard Joseph Giordano (; July 20, 1932 – March 27, 2010) was an American comics artist and editor whose career included introducing Charlton Comics' "Action Heroes" stable of superheroes and serving as executive editor of DC Comics.
Early ...
,
Barry Windsor-Smith
Barry Windsor-Smith (born Barry Smith, 25 May 1949) is a British comic book illustrator and painter whose best known work has been produced in the United States. He attained note working on Marvel Comics' ''Conan the Barbarian'' from 1970 to 197 ...
Jim Starlin
James P. Starlin (born October 9, 1949) is an American comics artist and writer. Beginning his career in the early 1970s, he is best known for space opera stories, for revamping the Marvel Comics characters Captain Marvel and Adam Warlock, an ...
,
Al Milgrom
Allen L. Milgrom (born March 6, 1950) is an American comic book writer, penciller, inker and editor, primarily for Marvel Comics. He is known for his 10-year run as editor of ''Marvel Fanfare''; his long involvement as writer, penciler, and inker ...
,
Pablo Marcos
Pablo Marcos Ortega, known professionally as Pablo Marcos at the
Walter Simonson
Walter Simonson (born September 2, 1946) is an American comic book writer and artist, best known for a run on Marvel Comics' '' Thor'' from 1983 to 1987, during which he created the character Beta Ray Bill. He is also known for the creator-owned ...
. Painted covers were provided by such artists as
Earl Norem
Earl H. Norem (April 17, 1923 – June 19, 2015), who signed his work simply Norem, was an American artist primarily known for his painted covers for men's-adventure magazines published by Martin Goodman's Magazine Management Company and for G ...
Joe Jusko
Joe Jusko (; born September 1, 1959) is an American artist known for his realistic, highly detailed painted fantasy, pin-up, and cover illustrations, mainly in the comic book industry. Jusko painted the 1992 Marvel Masterpieces trading cards, the ...
.
''Savage Sword of Conan'' was published under the Curtis imprint until issue 60, when it became part of the Marvel Magazine Group. Stories from the comic were reprinted in the
Marvel UK
Marvel UK was an imprint of Marvel Comics formed in 1972 to reprint US-produced stories for the British weekly comic market. Marvel UK later produced original material by British creators such as Alan Moore, John Wagner, Dave Gibbons, Steve Di ...
title of the same name. The original run of ''Savage Sword of Conan'' ran until issue #235 (July 1995).
Marvel Comics reacquired the publishing rights in 2018, and started a new run of ''Savage Sword of Conan'' collected editions beginning in February 2019. In 2022, Titan Comics acquired the license to reprint the magazine in new collected editions.
Publication history
The adventures in ''Savage Sword of Conan'' are not always consecutive (as they are in the color Marvel title ''
Conan the Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including '' Conan the Barbarian'' and '' Conan the Destroyer'') ...
''), and they cover different eras of Conan's life. The ''Savage Sword'' stories mostly feature an older Conan, and adapt Robert E. Howard stories and pastiches starting from " Black Colossus" (according to the Miller/Clark chronology), thus following the Roy Thomas stories in ''Conan the Barbarian''.
The first issue leads off with Thomas and
Barry Windsor-Smith
Barry Windsor-Smith (born Barry Smith, 25 May 1949) is a British comic book illustrator and painter whose best known work has been produced in the United States. He attained note working on Marvel Comics' ''Conan the Barbarian'' from 1970 to 197 ...
's adaptation of one of Howard's shortest but most well-known Conan tales, "
The Frost Giant's Daughter
"The Frost-Giant's Daughter" is one of the original fantasy short stories about Conan the Cimmerian, written by American author Robert E. Howard.
The story is set in the fictional history of the Hyborian Age and details Conan pursuing a spec ...
". This is one of Conan’s earliest tales chronologically. Still a teenager, he encounters a beautiful woman in the frozen north who leads him into an ambush by her giant brothers. Issue #2 featured another Howard adaptation, " Black Colossus", in which Conan faces off against a three-thousand-year-old sorcerer. This story teams long time ''Conan'' penciler John Buscema with his frequent partner Alcala. The cover of issue #5 sports a Boris Vallejo painting of Conan being crucified, from the story " A Witch Shall Be Born". This story features Conan at his most resilient, surviving a desert crucifixion to get revenge on the man who put him there.
Issues #6-10 included "People of the Dark", a 30-page tale scripted by Thomas and drawn by Alex Niño; the continued adaptation of Howard’s only full-length Conan novel, ''
The Hour of the Dragon
''The Hour of the Dragon'', also known as ''Conan the Conqueror'', is a fantasy novel by American writer Robert E. Howard featuring his sword and sorcery hero Conan the Cimmerian. It was one of the last Conan stories published before Howard' ...
'' (the first parts having been printed in ''Giant-Size Conan'' #1-4); and the adaptation of " Iron Shadows in the Moon", by Buscema and Alcala, where Conan goes from chief of the Zuagirs to pirate captain of the Red Brotherhood.
The next three years of the title featured numerous adaptations of Howard stories (many by the art team of Buscema and Alcala), including "
Shadows in Zamboula
"Shadows in Zamboula" is one of the original stories by Robert E. Howard about Conan the Cimmerian, first published in ''Weird Tales'' in November 1935. Its original title was "The Man-Eaters of Zamboula".
The story takes place over the course ...
", "
The Devil in Iron
"The Devil in Iron" is one of the original stories by Robert E. Howard about Conan the Cimmerian, first published in ''Weird Tales'' in August 1934. Howard earned $115 for the publication of this story.
The plot concerns the resurrection of ...
", "
The People of the Black Circle
"The People of the Black Circle" is one of the original novellas about Conan the Cimmerian, written by American author Robert E. Howard and first published in ''Weird Tales'' magazine in three parts over the September, October and November 1934 ...
", "
The Slithering Shadow
"The Slithering Shadow" is one of the original short stories starring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Cimmerian, written by American author Robert E. Howard and first published in the September 1933 issue of ''Weird Tales'' magaz ...
", "
The Pool of the Black One
"The Pool of the Black One" is one of the original short stories starring the sword and sorcery hero Conan the Cimmerian, written by American author Robert E. Howard. It's set in the pseudo-historical Hyborian Age, and concerns Conan becomi ...
", "
The Tower of the Elephant
"The Tower of the Elephant" is one of the original short stories starring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Cimmerian, written by American author Robert E. Howard. Set in the pseudo-historical Hyborian Age, it concerns Conan in ...
Beyond the Black River
"Beyond the Black River" is one of the original short stories about Conan the Cimmerian, written by American author Robert E. Howard and first published in ''Weird Tales'' magazine, v. 25, nos. 5-6, May-June 1935. The story was republished in t ...
The Flame Knife
''The Flame Knife'' is a 1955 fantasy novella by American writers Robert E. Howard and L. Sprague de Camp, featuring Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was revised by de Camp from Howard's original story, a then-unpublishe ...
The Treasure of Tranicos
"The Black Stranger" is a fantasy short story by American writer Robert E. Howard, one of his works featuring the sword & sorcery hero Conan the Cimmerian. It was written in the 1930s, but not published in his lifetime. When the original Conan ...
", and "
Wolves Beyond the Border
"Wolves Beyond the Border" is one of the original stories by American writer Robert E. Howard featuring Conan the Cimmerian, a fragment begun in the 1930s but not finished or published in Howard's lifetime. It is a peripheral story in the canon ...
".
Collected editions
In 2007, Dark Horse Comics began issuing a series of trade paperbacks, collecting and reprinting early issues of the title, as well as stories which originally appeared in ''
Savage Tales
''Savage Tales'' is the title of three American comics series. Two were black-and-white comics-magazine anthologies published by Marvel Comics, and the other a color comic book anthology published by Dynamite Entertainment.
Publication history Ma ...
''.The full series was reprinted as the Chronicles of Conan in 34 volumes with new colors. In 2018 when Marvel resumed the rights it began publishing its own collected editions of original Marvel material. In 2022,
Titan Comics
Titan Publishing Group is the publishing division of Titan Entertainment Group, which was established in 1981. The books division has two main areas of publishing: film and television tie-ins and cinema reference books; and graphic novels and co ...
acquired the license to reprint the magazine in new collected editions.
Marvel Omnibus Collected Editions
Awards
The comic won the "Comic"
British Fantasy Award
The British Fantasy Awards (BFA) are awarded annually by the British Fantasy Society (BFS), first in 1976. Prior to that they were known as The August Derleth Fantasy Awards (see August Derleth Award). First awarded in 1972 (to ''The Knight of ...
in 1975 and 1976.
See also
*
Conan (comics)
Conan the Barbarian by Robert E. Howard was first adapted into comics in 1952 in Mexico. Marvel Comics began publishing Conan comics with the series ''Conan the Barbarian'' in 1970. Dark Horse Comics published Conan from 2003 to 2018, when the ...
*
Conan (Marvel Comics)
Conan the Barbarian by Robert E. Howard was first adapted into comics in 1952 in Mexico. Marvel Comics began publishing Conan comics with the series ''Conan the Barbarian'' in 1970. Dark Horse Comics published Conan from 2003 to 2018, when the ...